User blog:Sir Ralph Wedgewood II/60114 W.P. Allen
Though designed under the LNER, 60114 was constructed by the infant British Railways at Doncaster in 1948 as Works No. 2031. By July 4th it was seen in the Erecting Shop nearly complete. On the 11th the un-named engine was on display for a week at a Loco and Rolling Stock exhibition at the 'Plant' resplendent in LNER apple green with 'British Railways' in block capitals on its lined tender (no. 731). It had a plain chimney. One commentator described it as looking extremely powerful. On August 6th it entered traffic from Kings Cross shed. Our first recorded sightings are on the 9th at Doncaster shed, being seen in Leeds Central station six days later, arrival from Leeds into Kings Cross (KX) at 2.40 pm on the 18th and hauling the 5.50 pm KX-Hull goods on the 20th. A brief return to its birthplace for non-classified repairs took place on the 24th; three similar visits were made in October. Sightings during the autumn were on the lower part of the East Coast Main Line: Potters Bar, Peterborough and Grantham. As the first of its class to be named a naming ceremony was held at KX on October 28th. W.P. Allen was a prominent trade union official who began his railway career on the Great Northern Railway then became a member of the Railway Executive. Naming a locomotive after such a person rather than directors reflects the fact that the A1s entered service during a Labour Government's tenure. It was the only A1 to be named for eighteen months and the only one to carry a name while in apple green. A regular working throughout November was the 1.30 pm KX -Doncaster. A series of comparative power trials with A2 60539 took place in early May 1949 with 60114 working the 1.00 pm KX - Leeds on the 3rd and 5th plus the 9.50 am Leeds - KX noted on the 4th and 6th. Then the trials were on the "Flying Scotsman" (60114's first prestigious workings) between May 10th-13th between the capital and Grantham (10.00 am out with 612 tons and 4.20 pm return with 640 tons). The A1 was recorded as steaming well with good riding and very smooth drawbar pull. Another named train hauled was the Down "Tees-Tyne Pullman" on June 9th. Slightly off a normal run was working the 8.05 am Newcastle -Paignton between York and Rotherham on July 2nd. In November 1949 W.P Allen was repainted in BR express blue with lion and wheel emblem on the tender while it was in Doncaster Works for general repairs. It was one of the earlier A1s to appear in these colours; eight had been in blue before November (seven from new and one repaint) while 60114 was one of five to come out in blue that month (three new and two repaints). A transfer to Copley Hill shed came on June 4th 1950.It was one of six reallocated 60114/17/20/23/25/33) to join the half dozen already there. Duties included Harrogate to KX expresses. Around this period, the utilitarian plain chimney was replaced by the more aesthetically-pleasing lipped version. Notable workings were a Down special from KX on September 17th 1950 and the Up "Yorkshire Pullman" on April 17th 1951. Repainting into BR lined green took place in August 1952. W.P.Allen was one of the later ones to be so treated; 34 had already been done and 60114 was one of a trio repainted that month. A further move to Grantham on February 15th 1953 is reflected in 60114 hauling of the 9.10 am ex- Lincoln train into Grantham on July 22nd that year. It had moved with 60125/44 to join the eight shedded there. A variety of work on the East Coast Main Line and linking routes ensued. Exemplifying this are: taking a KX to Newcastle train forward from its home town on September 1st; hauling the Down "Flying Scotsman" into Newcastle on June 17th and 19th 1954; and heading a passenger train from Stockton on October 3rd. A football special from KX was worked to its Newcastle destination on January 8th 1955; still in the North East 60114 pulled the 8.40 am South Shields -KX on July 30th. Shorter workings took place like the 6.45 am KX -Grantham train on October 4th 1956. Reallocation to Doncaster took place on September 2nd 1957 to give that shed its sole A1 at the time though it was joined by several others over the next few months. Runs continued from KX -Newcastle as well as to Leeds and York/Hull, the 2.10 pm from the capital to York/Hull being a frequent turn on late 1957 and 1958. Named trains featured like "The Tynesider" (Down) on December 18th and 26th 1956, the Up "Heart of Midlothian" from Newcastle on January 21st 1957 and the Up "West Riding" on New Years Eve 1958. On October 11th 1961 it was seen with "The White Rose" at Hatfield. Special or additional trains were worked by 60114. It arrived at KX at 8.53 pm with a train from Catterick on February 15th 1957, worked the 9.20 am extra out of KX on Christmas Eve 1958. An example of the common practice of changing engines on the ECML is the diagram for September 12th 1959: out with the 10.45 am KX to Peterborough and return from there with the ex-10.10 am Edinburgh. As late as 1958 60114 still carried the early BR lion on its tender. Non-passenger workings also featured. On June 20th 1956 it ran light engine in the Down direction through Little Bytham. KX- York parcels was another turn: the 11.00 am on November 22nd and the 8.40 pm on December 1st. After arriving with the train from Catterick on February 15th 1957 it departed KX at 11.00 pm on the parcels train to York. August 12th 1961 saw W.P.Allen steam through Doncaster on an Up fast fitted freight.On March 23rd 1963 it was observed on an Up freight at York. On April 10th it was seen hauling the Up seed potatoes goods through Newcastle at 10.30 am. Passenger train diversions saw 60114 going via Cambridge instead of the ECML on May 8th 1960 while on July 31st the route via Bishop Auckland was used instead of the Darlington - Durham section of the main line. Several unusual workings were made later in the locomotive's life. On July 29th 1961 it headed a Lincoln -Blackpool special through Doncaster. Blackpool was certainly reached on September 28th 1963 with a Gainsborough MRS special -no doubt for the illuminations. More unusual was seeing 60114 at Leicester Central on 1X46, a Women's Institute special from Mexborough to Beaconsfield (for a trip to Bekonscot model village) and return. It went further afield on July 7th 1964 on a Sheffield -Cardiff then Worcester special. It failed and was under repair at Worcester shed until August 7th and worked back to the ECML from Birmingham on the 11.41 am 1N72 extra to Newcastle. Even into the last year or two of its life W.P.Allen hauled named trains. It arrived at KX with the Up "Yorkshire Pullman" on April 4th 1963. The Down "Flying Scotsman" was brought by 60114 into Newcastle on February 18th 1964. On April 4th it passed through Grantham on the "Tees-Tyne Pullman" deputising for a diesel - a not uncommon practice for A1s at that period. Its last recorded 'namer' was the same train on April 20th. The last recorded passenger train was a Down troop special on September 11th. Parcels and goods trains continued to be worked. Newcastle was reached at 3.00 pm on a Down parcels from York on December 13th 1964 while on Christmas Eve it brought the 7.33 am Aberdeen -KX parcels into York - the final logging of 60114 hauling a train. The day before it had worked the 10.20 am Dringhouses -Tyne Yard goods. Withdrawal came on Boxing Day 1964, being the 22nd or 23rd to go along with 60158. It was still lying at Doncaster shed on January 24th 1965. On March 3rd it had moved, now lying withdrawn at Chater's Bank, Gateshead. On the 9th it was seen being towed through Newcastle by B1 61035 en route to Hughes Bolckow scrapyard in Blyth, Northumberland. During its life 60114 was to carry eight different boilers. As the first of the class it had lasted longer than many others;its active life of 16 years 4 months was more than a year above the class average. The rush to dieselise shortened 60114's lifespan but it had given very good service as the pioneer of an illustrious class. This history was compiled by Phil Champion based on a database compiled by Tommy Knox and with reference to the RCTS book "Locomotives of the LNER Part 2A" as background Category:Blog posts